MANILA, Philippines – San Miguel waxed hot early anew and cruised to its second straight win to start the PBA Governors’ Cup after handing Blackwater a 105-86 beating at the PhilSports Arena on Wednesday, February 1.

Jericho Cruz caught fire off the bench and June Mar Fajardo produced a double-double for the Beermen, who notched another blowout victory after crushing Phoenix by 21 points in their conference opener three days prior.

Cruz scored 13 of his game-high 22 points in the first half as he conspired with Fajardo and import Cameron Clark in a sizzling start that saw San Miguel open a sizable 63-35 at halftime.

Fajardo finished with 17 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals, while Clark chalked up 20 points – 14 coming in the first two quarters – with 9 rebounds and 2 assists.

The Bossing narrowed the gap to 72-85 at the start of the final salvo after erupting for 33 third-quarter points, but they failed to get any closer as triples from Chris Ross and Marcio Lassiter restored order for the Beermen.

Lassiter fired 13 points, Simon Enciso added 9 points, 7 assists, and 3 steals, while Ross chimed in 3 points and 7 assists.

San Miguel still played without injured players Terrence Romeo (hamstring) and Vic Manuel (calf).

As the Beermen spread the wealth on offense, they also flourished on the defensive end by limiting Blackwater import Shawn Glover to a PBA career-low 16 points on 7-of-19 shooting.

Glover contributed 12 assists but coughed up 7 turnovers in the loss that dropped the Bossing to 1-2.

Joshua Torralba led the Blackwater locals in scoring with 11 points, while RK Ilagan came up with his best game in a Bossing uniform with 10 points and 6 assists.

The Scores

San Miguel 105 – Cruz 22, Clark 20, Fajardo 17, Perez 14, Lassiter 13, Enciso 9, Tautuaa 7, Ross 3, Bulanadi 0, Brondial 0.

Blackwater 86 – Glover 16, Torralba 11, Ilagan 10, Taha 8, Banal 8, Hill 8, Ular 6, Casio 6, Ayonayon 5, Amer 4, Suerte 2, Escoto 2, DiGregorio 0.

Quarters: 33-24, 63-35, 83-68, 105-86.

– Rappler.com